Automatic register



Feb. 22, 1927. L" K. ALDRICH AUTOMATIC REGISTER Filed Oct. 22, 1924 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Zwtarffyh 17M" Feb. 22 1927.

L. K. ALDRICH AUTOMATIC REGISTER 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Oct. 22. 1924 Patented Feb. 22, 1927.

UNITED STKTES' PATENT OFFICE.

LESTER KYLE ALDRICH, or SIDNEY, onro.

AUTOMATIC REGISTER.

Application filed October 22, 1924. Serial No. 745,259.

The invention relates to an automatic register for registering sheets of paper for folders, ruling machines, perforators, stitchers, presses and other machines. w

The object of the present invention is to provide a simple, inexpensive and dependable register of strong, durable and comparatively inexpensive construction, designed for use primarily between an automatic feeder and a machine to which the sheets are to be fed and capable of automatically correcting any variation in paper feeding, whether the sheets be automatically fed or fed by hand, before the sheets enter the machine that performs the final operation.

A further object of the invention is to provide an automatic register of this character capable, regardless of how inaccurately the sheets may be fed, of automatically aligning the sheets so that they will enter a folder, ruling machine, perforator, stitcher, press or other machine, with perfectly true registrations of the edge of the sheet.

It is also an object of the invention to provide an automatic register equipped with means for causing the sheets of paper to pass rapidly through it without loss of time and without liability of the sheets being lifted up by currents of air or curling at the edge in contact with theregistering guides.

It is also an object'of the invention to provide an automatic register having means for stiffening or increasing the resistance of a sheet adjacent the registering guide to prevent light stock from buckling or curling at such edge.

Vith these and other objects in view, the

. invcntionconsists in the construction and novel combination and arrangement of parts Figure 3 is a side elevation of the shoe equipped with the paper engaging balls.

Figure 4 is an end View of the same.

Figure is a detailsectional view illustrating the manner of mounting the adjustable paper supporting table.

Figure 6 is a transverse sectional view of the registering guage.

In the accompanying drawings in which is illstrated the preferred embodiment of the invention, the automatic register which in practice is designed to be located between an automatic feeder and a folder or other machine, to be supplied with the sheets from the automatic feeder, comprises in its construction, a sub-frame 1, composed of parallel side bars and suitable connecting bars hereinafter described. One end of the subframe in Fig. 1 of the drawings is shown connected with a portion 2 of an automatic feeder but it will be readily understood that the automatic register is adapted to operate on sheets fed by hand. The sheets from the feed table 3 of the automatic feeder are delivered successively to a front transversely straight feed roller 4 and are gripped onthc same by rubber covered spools 5 and the sheetof paper is fed forward in a straight direction over the automatic register the full length of the sheet without having its straight advancing movement affected by diagonal feed tapes 6 of the automatic register until the sheet is released by the said advancing means. formed by the front feed roller 4 and the rubber'covered spools 5. The feed roller 42 is preferably constructed of steel but it may of course be made of any other suitable material audit is journaled in suitable bearings of the adjacent portion 2 ofthe automatic feeder and it is equipped at one end with a grooved pulley or sheave 7. The rubber covered spools or rotary elements 5 are suitably mounted on laterally extending journals 8 of arms 9 extending forwardly from a transverse rod or shaft 10, mounted in the portion 2 of the frame of the automatic feeder as clearly shown in Figure 1, but the front feed roller 4 and the rubber covered spools 5 maybe mounted in any other desired manner as will be readily understood and the weight of the arms 9 and the rubber covered spools which tively advanced into the automatic register the full length of the sheet without being moved laterally by the diagonal feed tapes 6 until the sheet is released by the front advancing means and has passed entirely beyond the same, as illustrated in dotted lines in Figure 1 of the drawings.

The diagonal feed tapes are arranged on front and rear rollers 11 and 12, disposed in parallelism and arranged at an an le to the straight transverse front feed rollhr 4 and at an angle to the straight forward movement of the sheet 13, in entering the automatic register. As soon as the sheet 13 is released by the front feeding or advancing means, it is moved laterally into contact with a vertical guide or portion 14 of a registering gauge 15. The registering gauge lo is L-shaped in cross section being composed of a horizontal bottom paper receiving portion and an outer vertical guide or portion 14 which receives and guides one of the side edges of the sheet of paper. The sheet 13 is advanced over the register with one of its side edges arranged approximately a quarter of an inch from the vertical guide 14 of the registering gauge 15, and it is maintained in such position with relation to the guide 14 until the sheet of paper is advanced its full length over the register and is released by the front advancing means. The sheet 13 is then acted on by the feed tape 6 and is moved laterally a suflicient distance to carry its side edge into contact with the vertical guide 14, and it is then carried forward without lateral movement and maintained in perfect register and alignment until it passes into the machine to be fed so that the sheets entering the machine will be in perfect alignment and register. The gauge 18 supported upon transverse connecting and supporting bars 16 arranged in parallelism with the angularly disposed tape rollers 11 and 12 and suitably secured at their ends at 17 to the sides of the sub-fra1ne 1. The horizontal portion of the registering gauge is arranged upon the upper faces of the said bars 16 and the said gauge is provided at the outer side with an integral sleeve 18, disposed vertically and receiving and secured to a riser arm 19 consisting of a rod provided at.its lower ends with a suitable sleeve 20, secured by a set screw 21 to a transverse rod or shaft 22. The transverse rod or shaft 22 is straight transversely of the registenand is in parallelism with the front feed roller 4 and is arranged at right angles to the parallel sides of the sub-frame, and it forms a support and a guide for the riser-arm 19, to permit lateral adjustment of the same and the gauge. The registering gauge has a pivotal movement or adjustment on the riser-arm and is secured in proper position with relation to the machine to be fed by means of a set screw 23 or other suitable means, and after the gauge has been once set. in square registering adjustment, it will be maintained in such. adjustment by the set screw 23 and may be adjusted laterally on the transverse guide rod 22 without effecting its square registering position.

The vertical longitudinal guides of the registering gauge is provided at its inner side with a longitudinal guard 24 preferably constructed of wood secured by screws 25 or other suitable fastening means to the guide 14 and arranged slightly above and in spaced relation to the bottom supporting portion of the registering gauge. The sheet 13 as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1 of the drawing, passes on to the automatic register with one of its side edges under the guard 21 and it is maintained in such position with relation to the guard and the guide during the passage of the sheet through the automatic register. The guard is adjustable vertically to vary the distance between its lower face and the bottom of the gauge to adapt it to the character of the paper passing through the automatic register and this Til adjustment may be effected by means of slots 26 in the guide 14 or any other suitable means. The guard prevents the curly edge of paper from turning up when it comes in contact with the vertical guide for registration and steel balls 27 hereinafter described are arranged relatively close to the guide 1 1 to stiffen and increase the resistance of the sheets and even extremely light stock will not buckle when it comes in contact with the vertical guide if the said balls 27 are employed.

In order to prevent currents of air from lifting up and turning the sheets, the register is equipped with central and side shoes,

but the number of shoes may of course be varied. The central and'side shoes 28 are .similar in construction and are plain at the bottom while the side shoe 29, which is located adjacent the registering gauge, is

equipped with the said balls 27. The shoes 28 and 29 are supported by transverse shafts or rods 30, extending across the sub-frame and suitably mounted in upwardly projecting lugs 31 of the sides of the sub-frame 1. The shoes are provided with front and rear ears 32 which are arranged on the transverse supporting rods 30, set screws 33 beingpreferably provided for securing the shoes in proper position, but any other suitable fastening means may be employed and friction may be relied upon to secure the shoes in position if desired. The shoes are provided with horizontal lower faces and have inclined lower faces 34 at their front ends to enable the sheets of paper to readily pass under the shoes which are supported in spaced relation with the bottom of the registering guide and with an adjustable paper supporting table35. The shoe 29 which is located adjacent to the registering guide is provided at its upper portion with front and rear laterally extending ears 36 in which is mounted a longitudinal rod 37 which forms a guide and a support for a plurality of ball holders 38 arranged at intervals along the rod 37. The' rod 37 which is removably mounted in the ears 36 is preferably provided at one end with a head and is :threaded at the other end for the reception of a nut 38, and any desired number of the ball holders 38 may be employed. The number of ball holders will be governed by the maximum size of the sheets to be registered and the longer the automatic register is built, to accommodate long sheets, the more balls will be required for the shoe 29. The ball holder 38 consists of a lower shoe portion presenting an intermediate lower horizontal face 40, a front inclined face 39 and a rear inclined face 41. The lower shoe portion is also provided with a vertical opening 42 reduced at the lower end at 43 and forming a socket for the reception of the ball 27 which projects below and rests upon the paper or upon the adjacent feed tape 6. The shoes are located at suitable intervals and the balls as clearly shown in Figure 1 of the drawing are arranged directly above the feed tape at the registering gauge side of the automatic register. The tape roller 11 is provided with a grooved pulley or sheave 44 designed to be connected by a suitable belt with the pulley or sheave 11 so that the tape rollers Wlll ro- 'tate at the same speed as the front feed roller 4.

The space between the front feed roller 4 and the front tape roller 11 is closed by a fixed paper supporting board or member 45 and the adjustable paper supporting table 35 substantially fills the space between the rollers 11 and 12, sufficient space being provided at the side opposite the registering gauge to provide for the desired adjustment ofithe paper supporting table and the gauge to arrange the matter in proper position with relation to the automatic feeder for feeding the sheets of the required size. The table which is supported upon the transverse bar 16 is yieldably maintained in its adjust;

ment by means of resilient clamping means composed of spaced screws 46, a clamping plate 47, and springs 48. The plate is provided with openings 49 to receive the bolts or screws 46 and it is maintained in engagement with the lower face of the transverse supporting bar 16 by the coiled springs 48' which are arranged on the lower portions of the screws 46 and which have their tension adjusted by nuts49. The springs operate to force the clamping plate 47 upward and draw the adjustable table downward so that the transverse bars 16 is clamped with suflicient frictional force tomaintain the table in its adjustment. This will. also enable the table to be adjusted laterally of the registering device without necessitating the adjustment of any fastening devices such as set screws or the like.

' The sheets ofpaper are either fed by hand or automatically to the front feeding or sheet advancing means, and the sheet will then travel in an approximately straightline clearing the vertical guide of the registering gauge about a quarter of an inch until the tail end of the sheet has passed the front feeding means. This movement in a straight direction carries the sheet within the automatic register its full length before it is affected by the diagonal or angular feed tapes which then causes the sheet to travel or move sideways in a parallel manner a distance of about a quarter ofan inch until the side edge of the sheet comes in contact with the vertical guide of the registering gauge after which the sheet travels in a perfectly straight line across the receiving plate 50 into the machine to be fed and any variation in paper feeding either by hand or by an automatic feeding machine will be automatically and positively corrected before the sheets enter the machine to be fed.

What is claimed is: I

1. An automatic register including a side guide against which the sheets are registered, means for mounting the guide for lateral adjustment and pivotal movement on a vertical axis, means for advancing a sheet in a straight direction in close proximity to the said guide and means for mvoing the sheet laterally into contact with the said guide at the completion of the said straight movement. i

2. An automatic register comprising a side guide against which the sheets are regittered, diagonally arranged feed tapes for moving a sheet laterally into contact with the guide, means for advancing the sheet in a straight direction over the diagonal tapes and while in close proximity to the guide and for releasing the sheet to permit the said tapes to more the sheet laterally into contact with the guides and a plurality of diagonally arranged shoes extending longitudinally of the register in parallelism with the said tapes and arranged to prevent the sheet from rising, one of the shoes being provided with a plurality of paper engaging devices located adjacent the side guide and adjustable longitudinally of the shoe and arranged tostifi'en the sheet adjacent the edge to prevent the sheet from buckling.

3. An automatic register comprising a side guide, means for advancing a sheet and for moving the same laterally, anda plurality of shoes extending longitudinally of the register and arranged to prevent the sheet from rising, one of the shoes being arranged adjacent the guide and provided with a plurality of holders adjustable 1ongitudinally of the shoe and having paper engaging balls. 1

4:. An automatic register including a longitudinal shoe arranged in spaced relation with the paper for preventing the same from turning up. a guide rod carried by the shoe and extending longitudinally thereof a plu rality of adjustable holders slidable 0n the rod and having lower shoe portions, the latter having sockets and wells located in the sockets and projecting below the holders to engage the paper.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature.

LESTER KYLE ALDRICH: 

